


Be yourself

by HackerPenguin



Category: Ninjala
Genre: Gen, It's self indulgant ninjala fic time, Van doesn't know how to talk to people, he's trying his best
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:20:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24206578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HackerPenguin/pseuds/HackerPenguin
Summary: Ninjas are at their strongest when working together. But Van was the odd one among them. Even when he tries to make friends, something always goes wrong.That was going to change very soon...
Comments: 8
Kudos: 20





	Be yourself

**Author's Note:**

> Ninja time
> 
> Also, I apologise for any typos or spelling errors

Alot of the ninjas at the WNA training acadamy got along relativly well. They were all far from masters with their newfound abilities and would spend most of their time fighting eachother for fun. Within a few weeks, most of them had formed their own cliques which they would spend all their time with.

Most of them...

Van always felt like the odd one out among them. Even though he was a ninja descendant, he often thought he didn't belong there. Many others thought the same. Almost no one would've bothered to talk to him if he wasn't such a talented ninja. This made things so much worse. People typically only wanted his skill and didn't want to put up with everything that came with it. Van tried to hide his strange behaviors and look normal but he would inevitably let the mask slip. Everyday, making friends became harder and harder.

He just wanted someone to like him. Was that too much to ask?

Maybe it was, he thought but he soon decided that an intense fight with seven other ninjas probably wasn't the best time to re-evaluate his social status. He needed to focus-

His thoughts were interuppted by sudden pain

Van was struck from behind and kicked to the ground, pinned under his new foe's weight. He barely had time to register what was in their hand. The punishing blade. Practically a death sentence in his current state. The young ninja reacted quickly, twisting onto his back and kicking his opponent away. He sprung back to his feet and gripped his weapon tightly. Already, Van was charging to attack at breakneck speeds, finally able to see his target: a blue haired boy wearing a cap. Said boy swung his blade when he saw Van getting close but he predicted this move. In one swift movement, he leaped over him, throwing the ippon katana to the side and unleashed his gum ninjutsu. Swirls of bright pink surrounded him as he rushed at his enemy. In the split second before impact, the other ninja's eyes widened as he realised what was about to hit him: the ninja tornado. And then...

_IPPON!_

Just in time too. The match was over just seconds later and that last ippon was more than enough to net him first place. Van hopped around exitedly, absolutly thrilled about his victory. However, he stopped his jumping and his smile faded when he saw most of the other ninjas shooting disapproving glares at him. His general fidgeting still continued regardless. He was never able to sit still. That couldn't be changed. Not now. Not ever. He saw everyone clapping but he wasn't sure if they were being genuine or not. He did see quite a few of them roll their eyes. Van sighed. He could never truly win. Not here. When he won, others got angry, told him that he didn't deserve it, absolutly tearing into him and damaging his self-esteem. When he lost... well, he'd lose. And be mocked for his failure.

Van wandered over to a nearby vending machine and bought himself some soda and a bag of cheese puffs. He took a long sip from the bottle and found himself staring at the other ninjas, all laughing and playing with eachother. Once again, he longed for that kind of friendship. Or even acceptance. He's take simple tolarance at this point. As he stood there, he saw someone running over to him and they appered to be shouting. A sinking feeling of dread overcame him when he saw who it was.

It was the blue haired boy he'd just fought.

Oh no.

He knew what always came next. The shouting, the insults, the threat, with others soon ganging up on him. He was already overstimulated, he really didn't want to deal with this now. The young ninja turned his back to him and tried to blend into the background, not wanting to look back. After a few moments, he thought he was safe, only to be proven wrong when he suddenly felt someone's hand grasp his shoulder. He jumped backwards and turned to face the other ninja.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you."

Van was surprised by his tone of voice. It was...soft, friendly, almost comforting. The other ninja was looking at him. Clearly he was expecting a response

"It's fine, you don't have to apologise" he mumbled, a bit more comfortable but still aprehensive.

"Anyway, I just wanted to say that you really impressed me today. I saw you fighting before the end of the match and you were so swift and graceful." 

"Th-thanks..." Van blushed and started fiddling with his badge. "By the way, who are you?"

"Oh, I'm Kappei. And your name is?"

"Van..."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Van!" Kappei said with a smile. However, he noticed Van wasn't smiling back and was actually looking rather uncomfortable. "Is something wrong?"

"I just... can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not"

Kappei gave a confused glance. "What? No, I'm being serious. It is genuinly nice to meet you"

Van stared at him, suprised by the interaction. A fellow ninja was talking to him in a way that wasn't hostile, patronising or dismissive. It was actually incredible. On the other hand, he wasn't really sure what to say and do. The young ninja was snapped out of his thoughts when he saw Kappei was looking at him strangly. It was clear he was expecting a response.

He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

Kappei saw that he was getting nervous and decided to end the conversation. "I need to go right now but do you want to hang out this evening?"

Van nodded gleefully.

"Great! Well, I'll see you then!" He waved as he left and Van waved in response, both bewildered and overjoyed at the interaction. He felt rather awkward during the conversation but he didn't think it went badly. After all, Kappei did want to see him again so he must have done something right. He had no idea what prompted this but he didn't really care. Something was finally going right.

And Van wasn't about to question something good happening to him.


End file.
